Khader El-Yateem (Photo by Aslan Media, Creative Commons license)
Kings County Politics reports that Rev. Khader El-Yateem of Salam Arabic Lutheran Church in Bay Ridge has entered the race for the 43rd District City Council Seat, which encompasses Bay Ridge, Dyker Heights and Fort Hamilton. The pastor joins four other candidates seeking to replace term-limited Vincent Gentile – Assemblymember Peter Abbate, Justin Brannan, Kevin Peter Carroll and Nancy Tong.
El-Yateem, a native of Bethlehem in the West Bank, is, “as far as KCP knows,” the first Palestinian American to run for public office in NYC.
Go to Kings County Politics for more on the Arab community in Bay Ridge and details on when and where El-Yateem will kick off his campaign.